Method for improving fuel economy of an operated vehicle

Abstract

In one embodiment of the present invention, an apparatus is provided comprising a connector to an onboard diagnostics (OBD) port of a vehicle, wireless communications circuitry, and a processor and a memory, the memory storing instructions that when executed by the processor cause the processor to monitor fuel consumption of the vehicle relative to mileage driven to derive fuel efficiency values, monitor driving behavior concurrently and associating certain driving behaviors to any dips and rises in the fuel efficiency values, and transmit the values and associated data to a wireless communications appliance wirelessly paired to communicate with the apparatus.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. An apparatus comprising:
 a connector to an on board diagnostics (OBD) port of a vehicle; 
 wireless communications circuitry; and 
 a processor and a memory, local to the vehicle, the memory storing instructions that when executed by the processor cause the processor to: 
 monitor fuel consumption of the vehicle relative to mileage driven to derive fuel efficiency values over time; 
 monitor behaviors of a driver of the vehicle concurrently over time with the fuel consumption and associate the behaviors of the driver to data indicating any dips and rises in the fuel efficiency values; and 
 transmit the fuel efficiency values and the data to a wireless communications appliance wirelessly paired to communicate with the apparatus; 
 wherein the wireless communication apparatus connects to an Internet and sends the fuel efficiency values and the data to a computerized server having memory executing instructions for connecting to a database, retrieving current fuel prices stored in the database, available local to the vehicle, and generates a summary of vehicle operation cost including recommendations for correcting driver behavior and vehicle service to improve fuel efficiency, providing said summary to the driver via the wireless communication apparatus. 
 
     
     
       2. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the wireless circuitry provides a short distance wireless universal serial bus (USB) or near field communication (NFC). 
     
     
       3. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the monitored behaviors of the driver include transmission gear shifting, braking, accelerating, and steering. 
     
     
       4. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the wireless communications appliance is one of a smart phone, a tablet computer, or a laptop computer. 
     
     
       5. A method comprising acts:
 monitoring consumption of fuel by a vehicle relative to mileage driven and deriving fuel efficiency values over time via a local apparatus having a connector to an on board diagnostics (OBD) port of a vehicle, wireless communications circuitry, a processor and a memory; 
 monitoring, via the apparatus, driving behavior over time of a driver of the vehicle concurrently with fuel consumption and associating certain driving behaviors to any dips and rises in the fuel efficiency values; 
 transmitting, from the apparatus, the fuel efficiency values and associative data collected during monitoring to a wireless communications appliance wirelessly paired to communicate with the apparatus; 
 uploading, from the wireless communications appliance, the fuel efficiency values and associative data collected during monitoring to a server connected to a network; 
 accessing, by the server, current fuel pricing data relative to the location of the vehicle; 
 processing, at the server, at least the fuel efficiency values against the current fuel pricing data to derive cost values for operating the vehicle; and 
 generating a summary of the cost values and the associated certain driving behaviors, the summary including recommendations for correcting driver behavior and vehicle service to improve fuel efficiency, and sending said summary over the network to the driver of the vehicle via the wireless communications apparatus. 
 
     
     
       6. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the wireless circuitry provides a short distance wireless universal serial bus (USB) or near field communication (NFC). 
     
     
       7. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the monitored behaviors of the driver include transmission gear shifting, braking, accelerating, and steering. 
     
     
       8. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the wireless communications appliance is one of a smart phone, a tablet computer, or a laptop computer. 
     
     
       9. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the associated certain driving behaviors effecting fuel consumption are labeled and time stamped to indicate the sequence and the duration of said driving behaviors. 
     
     
       10. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the network is an Internet network. 
     
     
       11. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the fuel is one of gasoline, diesel, or a bio-fuel. 
     
     
       12. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the vehicle is a hybrid vehicle. 
     
     
       13. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the location of the monitored vehicle is determined by global positioning satellite (GPS) data. 
     
     
       14. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the generated summary is made available to a third-party communications appliance when available at the server. 
     
     
       15. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the generated summary is posted on a webpage owned by the driver, third-party, vehicle owner or operator. 
     
     
       16. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the generated summary is communicated to the wireless communication appliance using email or text messaging. 
     
     
       17. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the vehicle is one of an automobile, a truck, a bus, a service vehicle, or a recreational vehicle. 
     
     
       18. The method of  claim 5 , wherein the current fuel pricing data is accessed from one or more local fuel cost reporting services.